Second Quarter 2014

In This Edition

This article investigates the use of factor-based methods for predicting industry-wide bank stress. Specifically, using the variables detailed in the Federal Reserve Board of Governors' bank stress scenarios, the authors construct a small collection of distinct factors.

No history of the St. Louis Fed would be complete without a chapter on its leadership in providing economic data for the public. Today, this long-standing commitment to data service is encapsulated in one name: FRED®.

This article is a reflection on monetary policy in the United States during Ben Bernanke's two terms as Chairman of the Federal Open Market Committee, from 2006 to 2014. Inflation targeting, policy during the financial crisis, and post-crisis monetary policy (forward guidance and quantitative easing) are discussed and evaluated.

Many metropolitan areas in the United States display substantial racial segregation and substantial variation in incomes and house prices across neighborhoods. To what extent can this variation be summarized by a small number of representative (or synthetic) neighborhoods?

Over one-half of the fiscal spending component of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA; i.e., the Recovery Act) was allocated via grants, loans, and contracts. Businesses, nonprofits, and nonfederal government agencies that received this type of stimulus funding were required to report the number of jobs directly created and saved as a result of their funding.